Preparing for Summer

MandM90

We are frantically planting in the allotment. We just bought our first home 6 months ago so we're also thinking about getting the garden up to scratch.

Fans will come down from the loft later this year, given a good dust and put in bedrooms. Heating is now switched to OFF permanently (yay) and I've been looking for light summer recipes

Also, going to stock up on fake Pimms and gin from Lidl!

WantAnOrange

Hello! Checking back in. I started this thread during the loveliness that was the Easter Holidays then kind of de-railed once I got back to work.

Our garden looks horrific because the builder finally came round and ripped up the rotten decking but the landlord hasn't decided what she wants it replaced with. I'm rather cross because we are now stuck with a totally inaccessible garden on a beautiful bank holiday weekend!

PasturesNew

What I did in my youth:
- jamjar, shove some leaves in it, go out round the bushes collecting ladybirds and putting them into the jar. Probably banned/illegal/cruel these days though.
- Fishing net - net on the end of a bit of cane - fishing for tiddlers in a local stream
- blackberrying (not much/often as we had enough fruit in the garden)
- picnic (well, tomato sandwiches and orange squash) sitting beside the local paddling pool
- in the garden making all sorts of tents with sheets pegged to the line
- bag of builders sand in the garden and we made sandcastles, you could even get them to make their own flags/bunting
- simple colouring books and cheap water & brush paints
- a sheet of metal and some small magnets - draw a target on the metal and prop it up beside the house wall
- cheap paddling pool filled with water in the garden on super hot days
- DIY bubble blowing (washing up liquid/water and reusing the first bubble pot we were bought).
- pressing flowers, never actually did this much, or well.

All pretty much "free", anything bought was reusable for years.

TopsyGirl

Oooo lovely idea for a thread! I've spent a lot of time in the last week in the garden.It was a huge mess and also there was a lot of scrap.
Sorted out the sheds and put all rubbish in massive pile and got a rubbish collection service to take it all, cut down all the brambles ( feet of them!!) and today cut all the grass and done lots of weeding.My garden is massive,well over 100ft so not an easy task.
Going to get some seeds and grow a few easy things in pots, will be nice to do with my children and save a bit of money too!

cheel

Hi want an orange,

I also walk to the beach with my son. We are both very fair so need a beach tent too. I get around it by having a coolbag backpack. We have used it tons! Then I've one hand free for a bag of towels ect and the very light pop up beach tent thing. Other hand free for son! He carries his own toys!!

I tried a shopping trolley, not the best on sand!!!

We also used to make rosewater. Literally just putting the gone over rise petals in a bowl of water, leaving it to steep for a bit in the sun and it magically turned into perfume!

Water drawings with a paintbrush jar of water and the path. On really hit days we used to race each other to write our names before the last one dried and vanished!

Xx

cheel

Oh I forgot to say the best one. Geocashing!

milasavesmoney

I like to get a bit of a base tan...a bit of color on my legs and arms. That way, when I wear shorts, I don't blind anyone from the white glare.:D

VfM4meplse

This year I'm going to keep the garden neat and tidy, but that's it. It will be the first year I don't plant flowers. Why? Slugs.

moneyistooshorttomention

Still working on getting the garden sorted out as a "proper garden" - as I'm now living in an area where "concrete gardens" predominate.

But it's part way towards "normal" and I've got a decent table and chairs set ready now for sitting on all summer. Part of the garden has changed from "concrete garden" to "proper garden" and that needs digging over and putting some bark chippings on to deal with all the couch grass that keeps popping up everywhere in this area - but I've got a lot of plug plants en route that I'll be planting there. With all the couch grass and the gales/rain this area has etc etc - it is one heck of a challenge to have a proper garden here - but I'm making progress.

Most of my vertical garden space is now done and I'll get some climbing plants to go up some of it (they'll only be temporary in temporary containers - ie bog-standard plants such as clematis in plastic containers). That will help the look a lot - whilst I wait for my permanent climbing plants in decent containers.

It will then look recognisably like a garden - whilst I wait to save up for the (gulp....LOTS of £s to turn it totally into a proper garden).

It will look so much better already though in a couple of weeks from now.:)

TopsyGirl

I've now got myself a small garden furniture set and barbecue so me and my girls can spend more time out in garden ( when weather returns to nice!) and also have the pots,compost and seeds ready.